Windmill construction



Feb. 24, 1931. H. M. LOEBER WINDMILL CONSTRUCTIbN 3 Sheets-Sheet 2J7Z0e70r; rum"; Woe/ 5e7- n w jg Filed Nov. 8, 1926 5 1931 H. M. LOEBER1,794,188

WINDMILL CONSTRUCTION Filed Nov. 8, 1925 3, Sheets-Sheet 3 Patented Feb.24, 1931 HERMAN"- M. Loner-apes Bneraicn, NEBRASKA, Assienoa' Tnnivirs'rna 1mm. MAN"- FACT'URING (30., 9F BFATRIGE,

SKA, A CORPORATION OF NEBRASKA WINDMILL CONSTRUCTION Application filedNovember 8, 1826. Serial No. 146,967.

lhis invention relates to a windmill construction.

One of the objects of this invention is to provide a new and novelmethod of oiling the operating mechanism of a windmill construction.

A further object of this invention is to provide *indmill constructionwhich will permit of the removalof the wheel shaft, together with itsassociated elements, for repairs without removing the mill from thetowel.

A further object of this invention is to pro vide a windmillconstruction having an automatic adjustment for the bearings of the windwheel.

A further object of this invention is to provide an improved pull-outmechanism for a windmill construction.

A further object of this invention is to provide an improved gear andgear support construction.

Further objects of this invention will be apparent from the descriptionand drawings forming a part of this specification, to which latterreference may now be had for a more complete understanding of thecharacteristic features of this invention, in which drawings:

Figure 1 is a top plan elevaticnal view of the windmill constructionwith the cover or hood removed; 1

Fig. 2 is a side view partially in section taken on the line 22 of Fig.1;

Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional View taken on the line 33 of Fig. 1;

a is a vertical sectional viewof the lower portion of the supportingstem and the pull-out mechanism;

Fig. is a top plan sectional view taken on the line 55 of Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is a view similar to Fig. 5 taken on the line 66 of Fig. 4;

Fig. 7 is a top plan sectional View taken on the line 'Z? of Fig. 3; and

*ig. 8 is sectional View of a further embodiment of the end of thetubular portion of this device.

In the drawings, the construction shown therein comprises a main frameor head. 10,

a wind Wheel (not shown) mounted on the hub 11, a vane (not shown)mounted on the vane stem 12, and the transmission from the wind wheel 11to the pump rod 13, all of said elements being mounted on the main frameor head 10. The head is mounted on 'a rotatable tubular stem 14, whichstem contains the pull-out mechanism 15 for throwing the mill out ofgear.

The head 10 is so designed asto provide a housing for containing asubstantial supply of lubricants 16, which lubricant is convey-ed to theva "iousparts of the operating mechanism by a method which will behereinafter disclosed.

The wind wheel hub is mounted on a Wheel shaft 17, which shaft iscarried in the bearings l8 and 19, the outer members or cups of whichare contained in the housings 18a and 19a which in turn are supported bythe main frame 10. These bearings 18 and 19, which are of the taperedroller type, are adapted to take the radial load f'the wind wheel whilesaid bearing 19 is also adapted to take the thrust load through thespacer 29 secured to the shaft l'Zby the pin 21, said spacer 20 beingdisposed adjacent said bearing 19. It will be apparent that the thrustload, due to wind pressure on the wind wheel, tend to urge the wheelshaft 17 rearwardly and is limited by means of the spacer 2O abuttingthe bearing 19 which is fixed to the main frame.

A. pair'ofvpinions 22 and 23 are mounted on the wheel shaft 17, one oneach side of the bearing 19, the pinion 22 being secured to the shaft 17adjacent the spacer 20 by means of awkey 24 and the pinion 23 beingclamped with'a spacer 25' and the cone of the bearing 19 against thespacer 20 by the nut 26, said pinion being held from rotation on saidshaft by a key 27. By removing the nut 26 and the pinion 23, thisconstruction permits the removal of the shaft 17 and the parts mountedthereon, bolts 37 being removed, without disturbing the housing or mainframeandthe remaining parts which said housing contains. An optionalmethod of removing shaft 17 and the parts mounted thereon is to unscrewthe guide rods l7 and 4,8 and, With l OltSBT er bearing 18 and thence onthe wheel hub 11.

The outer bearing 18 is adapted to be lubrioated with grease by means ofthe grease cup 31' inserted in passageway 32 in the main frame and witha communicating passageway 33 in the bearing housing 18a, which latterpermits the grease to enter the bearing recess. The grease is kept fromworking out of the bearing by means of a cup-shaped member 34 on oneside of the bearing'and a felt'washer 35 on the other side of saidbearing. This washer is retained by a plate 36 which memher and thehousing 18a are secured to the main frame by bolts 37. A drain hole 38,also in said housing 18a, permits any accumulation of oil to drain backinto the main frame.

Referring particularly to Figure 8, a construction is shown whereby thegrease cup 31, passageways 32 and 33, drain hole 38 and the cup-shapedmember 34 are eliminated. It has been found that a sufiicient amount ofoil will work out along the shaft 17 past the oil thrower 30 to properlylubricate the outer bearing 18. The felt washer 35, as heretoforeindicated, prevents the escape of oil outward around the shaft 17 A pairof large gears 39 and 40 are loosely mounted on a stud shaft or trunnion41 and engage the pinions 22 and 23 respectively. The trunnion 41 is, inturn, rigidly mounted on a suitable bracket 42, which latter ispreferably cast integral with the housing or main frame 10. These largegears 39 and 40 are connected by means of pitmen 43 and 44 to across-head 45, one end of each of said pitmen being pivotally connectedto a pin 46 extending through said crossehead. The cross-head isarranged to slide upon a pair of guide rods 47 and 48, both rods beingthreaded into the main frame 10 and connected at their upper ends by aspacing brack et 49, which bracket acts also as a fastening for hoodcover 10a, which hoodserves to keep out rain and dirt and also preventloss of the lubricant. The pump rod 13 is fastened at its upper end to apump-rod carrier 50, which carrier comprises a substantially U-shapedbracket member which is pivotally mounted on the pin 46, the arms orbearing portions of the bracket being disposed between the pitmen andthe cross-head 45. This construc tion takes the load off the cross-head,whereby said cross-head acts only in the capacity of a guiding member. A

hubs of the gears 39 and 40 respectively, and

in this manner the gears are kept in their proper positions on the shaftor trunnion 41.

In the operation of the pumping mechanism, motion is transmitted bymeans of the wind wheel hub 11 through the wheel shaft 17 the pinions 22and 23, the gears 39 and 40, the pitmen 43 and 44, and the pump-rodcarrier 50 to the pump rod 13, the pitmen serving to translate therotary motion of the gearing into a reciprocating movement in the pumprod.-

The lubrication of the guide rods 47 and 48 and the pin 46 isaccomplished by oil being carried upwardly by a pair of oil conveyors 57and. 58 projecting from the side of the rim of each gear 39 and 40respectively. These conveyors drip the oil into an oil receiver 59 onthe lower end of the cross-head 45. The oil then passes from thereceiver 59 through a pair of small holes 60 in the cross-head to theguide rod 48 where it is worked upwardly by the motion of the cross-headand is sheared off into an inclined oil channel 61 at the top of thecross-head. The oil channel is divided by a rib 62 which permits part ofthe oil to be carried to the opposite guide rod 47 and the remainder tobe guided down through a hole 63 to lubricate the pin 46. Thelubrication of the gears and the remaining bearings is performed by theoil picked up by the gears as they rotate, the gears flooding themselvesand the bearings.

The pull-out construction for throwing the mill out of gear comprises apull chain 64, running over the pulleys 65 and 66 mounted on the mainframe, and a rock arm 67 to which the chain 64 is connected at 68. Thisrock arm 67 is mounted on the vertically pivoted pin 69 on which thevane stem 12 is also pivotally mounted and said rock arm is providedwith an abutment portion 70 which engages the strut 71. extendingbetween, and secured to, the members 72 and 73 of the vane stem 12. Thisloose engagement between the rock arm 7 and the strut 71 enables thewindmill to regulate itself in the wind by permitting pivotal movementof the head with respect to the vane without interference from thepull-out rock arm. i

In order to provide a cushioning effect for the throwing in-and-out ofgear of the mill, a pivoted buffer member 74 is provided having anabutment portion 75 for limiting the throwing-in-movement of the mill,and another abutment portion 76 for limiting the throwing-out-movementof the mill. The

butter or cushioning member 74: is pivotally mounted on the pin 69 whichpin is the same as that on which the vane stem and the throwout arms arepivoted. In order to provide a connection between the buffer member 74and the vane stem 12, which will yield in both directions, a pair ofcoil compression springs 7'7 and *58 are provided through which theconnecting rod 79 extends. One end of this connecting rod 79 pivotallysecured to the vane stem, and the other end extends through an openingin a lug 80 in the buffer member 74. In order to throw the mill intogear and to hold the mill in the wind against the unbalanced pressure onthe wind wheel, a heavy coil tension spring 81 is provided, one end ofwhich is secured to the vane stem and the other end is secured to a hook82 mounted on the main frame 10. This construction may also be adjustedto regulate the speed at which the mill runs.

In operation, when the pull-out chain 64 is released to allow the spring81 to throw the mill into gear, the abutment portion 75 of the buffermember engages the side of the head 10 and the butter spring 77 acts asa cushion to bring the further relative movement between the head andthe vane stem to a stop. o

On the other hand, when the mill is thrown out of gear by pulling downon the chain 64, the abutment portion .7 6 of the buffer member engagesthe side of the head 10, whereupon the relative motion between the headand the vane stem is brought to a stop by the cushioning spring 78.

In order to hold the wind wheel against rotation when the mill is out ofgear, the hub of the wind wheel is provided with an internal annularbraking surface, as at 84, with which cooperates an internal expandingbrake band '85. The brake band is mounted on a bracket 83 secured to themain frame 10.

The brake band 85 is forced outwardly into braking position when themill is thrown out of gear by means of a bell crank 87 plvotally mountedto swing about a vertical axis by means of a pin 88 secured to aprojection 86 on the main frame. This bell crank is operated from thepull-out arm 67 by means of a link 89 pivotally connected at 90 to thebell crank and also pivotally connected by pin 91 to an arm 92 formedintegral with the pullout arm 67. 7

Referring particularly to Figs. 3, 4L, 5 and 6, the chain 64, afterpassing over the pulley 66, enters the tubular stem 14: and passesdownwardly therethrough to connect with the upper end of a tubularmember 93. This member 93 is of such a diameter as to freely fit theinner diameter of the tubular member 14 and has slidable engagementlengthwise thereof butis secured to rotate withthe stem 14 by the pin94. A slot 95 in the tubular member 93 is engaged by said pin 94 and thepin,

in turn, is fixed to the stem 14, which construction provides for theaforementioned slidable, but non-rotatable, engagementbetween therespective tubular members. The two-part casting 96 is clamped aroundthe lower part of the pipe stem 14 and serves to' prevent any verticalmotion of the mill head in high winds.-

- A casting 97 is fastened to the lower end of the tubular member 93 bymeans of rivets tower post or other stop to prevent rotation of theswivel with the pivot stem, which action would wind the pull-out wirearound the pump rod. It will be apparent from the foregoing that theentire structure may ro' tate with the turning of the mill to engage thevarious directions of the wind and will not in any manner cause theattendant-to make adjustments prior to pulling the mill out of gear orof releasing the mill into gear.

While a single embodiment of this invention is herein shown anddescribed, it is to be understood that the device is not to be limitedto that specific structure since various modifications may be apparentto those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scopeof this invention, and there fore, the same is to be limited only by thescgpe of the appended claims and the prior ar I claim:

1. In a windmill the combination of a wind wheel, a housing, a shaftsupported in said housing and upon which said wind wheel is mounted,pinions mounted on said shaft, a 'bracket'in said housing, anonrrotatable trunnion member supportedcentrally and extending oneachside of said bracket, and gears mounted on the extending port-ions ofsaid trunnion for engagementwith said pinions.

2. In a windmill the combination of a wind wheel, a. housing, a shaftsupported in said housing and upon which said wind wheel is mounted,pinions mounted on said shaft, a bracket in said housing, anon-rotatable trunnion membersupported centrally and extend mg on eachside of said bracket, gears mount ed on the extending portions of saidtrunnion for engagement with said pinions, a crosshead, and guide rodsupon which said crosshead is slidably mounted, one of said guide rodsholding said trunnion in position on said bracket.

.3. In a windmill the combination of a Wind wheel, a housing, a shaftmounted on V tending from saidhousin said housing and arranged tosupport said Wind wheel, pinions mounted on said shaft, a non-rotatabletrunnion member, means for mounting said non-rotatable trunnion memberwithin said housing, gears mounted on said trunnion for engagement withsaid pinions, and holding means for preventing end motion of said gearsalong saidtrunnion, said holding means being detachablymounted on saidnon-rotatable trunnion.

- 4. In a windmill the combination of a wind wheel,a housing, a shaftmounted in said housing and arranged to support said wind wheel, across-head, guide rods upon which said cross-head is slidably mounted, anon-rotatable trunnion, and means for mounting said non-rotatabletrunnion in said housing, said trunnion being held in position by one ofsaid guiderods.

5.- In a. windmill the combination of a wind wheel, a housing having arecess therein, a bearing member for engaging said recess in saidhousing, an elongated tubular portion exg and having a recess therein, asecond bearing member adapted to engage said recess of said tubularportion, a shaft journalled in said bearings for supporting said windwheel, and pinions on said shaft, said bearings and said pinions beingmovable in a longitudinal direction through said recesses.

6. In a windmill the combination of a wind wheel, a housing, a shaftmounted in said housing and arranged to support said wind wheel, anelongated tubular member extending from said housing and encompassingsaid shaft, a bearing in said tubular member adapted to support theouter end of said shaft, said shaft and said bearing being removablethrough said tubular member.

7. In a windmill the combination of a wind wheel, a housing, a shaftmounted in said housing forsupporting said'wind wheel, pinions mountedon said shaft within said housing, an elongated tubular member extendingfrom said housing and encompassing said :shaft, a bearing in saidtubular member "adapted to support the outer end of said shaft, saidshaft one of said pinions, and said bearing being removable through saidtubular portion. v

p 8. In a windmill thecombination of a wind wheel, a housing, a shaftmounted in said housing for supporting said wind wheel, a

pump roe, means for transmitting power from said wind wheel tosaid pumprod, a tubular member extending from said housing and encompassing saidshaft, a bearing in said tubular member for supporting the outer end ofsaid shaft, and means for removing said shaft and those members mountedthereon through said tubular member. I

9. In a windmill the combination of a wind wheel, a housing, a shaftmounted in said housing and .on which said wind wheel is said pumprod.

fixedly mounted, pinions fixed to said shaft within said housing, a pumprod, means for transmitting power from said pinions to said pump rod, atubular member extending from said housing and encompassing said shaft,a

bearing in said tubular member and for supporting the outer end of saidshaft, and means for removing said shaft, one of said pinions, and saidbearing through said tubular member. I

10. In a windmill the combination .of a wind wheel, a housing, a shaftsupported in said housing and having said wind wheel mounted thereon, avane supported by said housing, a tubular stem upon which said housingis mounted, a sleeve slidably mounted in said tubular stem, a swivelmember rotatably mounted on the lower end of said sleeve, and means forconnecting said sleeve and said vane.

11. In a windmill having provisions whereby it may be pulled out of thewind the combination of a wind wheel, a housing, a shaft mounted in saidhousing for supporting said wind wheel, a tubular stem upon which saidhousing is mounted, a tubular sleeve slidably mounted in said stem, andmeans connected to said sleeve for pulling said wind wheel out of thewind.

12. In a windmill having provisions where by it may be pulled out of thewind the combination of a wind wheel, a main frame, a tubular stem uponwhich said frame is mounted, a tubular sleeve mounted in said stem andmeans connected to said sleeve for pulling the windmill out of gear.

13. In a windmill the combination of a wind wheel, a main frame, a shaftmounted on said frame for supporting said wind wheel, a tubular stemadapted to rotate and upon which said frame is mounted, a tubular sleevemounted in said stem, a swivel rotatably mounted on the lower end ofsaid sleeve, and connecting means extending from said swivel, saidswivel being stationary as said windmill rotates about its verticalaxis.

14. In a windmill the combination of a wind wheel, a housing, a tubularstem adapted to rotate around :a vertical axis and for supporting saidhousing, a vane pivotally mounted on said housing, a sleeve slidablymounted in said tubular stem, and means for actuating said vanecomprising a connecting device secured to said vane and said sleeveandpassing through said stem and arounc said housing. I 7

15. In a windmill the combination of a wind wheel, a supporting frame, apump rod, a tubular stem upon which said frame is mounted to rotateabout a vertical axis, a sli'dable sleeve mounted in. said stem andforming a guide for thelower portion of 16.1Ina windmill the combinationof a wind wheel a housing, a shaft. supported in said housing and uponWhich said Wind Wheel is mounted, pinions mounted on said shaft, abracket 1n sald houslng, a non-rotatable 1 trunnion member supportedcentrally on said bracket, gears mounted on the over-hanging portions ofsaid trunnion for engagement with said pinions.

17. In a windmill the combination of a wind wheel, a frame supportingsaid wind wheel, vane carried by the frame, a vertical tubular stemsupporting the frame, a tubular sleeve slidably mounted in the verticalstem and arranged to be operated manually, and means connecting the vaneand the tubular sleeve.

18. In a windmill the combination of a wind wheel, a housing supportingsaid wind wheel, a vane carried by said housing, a vertical tubular stemsupporting the housing, a slidable member mounted in the vertical stemand arranged to be operated from apoint below the mill, and meansconnecting the vane and the slidable member.

19. In a windmill the combination of a wind wheel, a housing, a shaftsupported in said housing and having said wind wheel mounted thereon, avane supported by said housing, a rotatable tubular stem upon which saidhousing is mounted, a sleeve slidably mounted in said tubular stem androtatable therewith, a swivel member rotatably mounted on the lower endof said sleeve, and means for connecting said sleeve and said vane.

20. In a windmill the combination of a winl wheel, a housing, a shaftmounted on said housing and arranged to support said wind wheel, pinionsmounted on said shaft, a non-rotatable trunnion member mounted in saidhousing, gears mounted on said trunion for engagement with said pinions,a radial flange on the inner hubs of said gears, and a locating memberfor engaging said flanges to prevent endwise movement of said gears.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto subscribed my name. HERMAN M.LOEBER.

